Compensation of Respondents
From ICE Primer: A Tobacco Control Research Methodology Primer
When respondents are being asked to participate in a lengthy interview, or to make a commitment to several waves of responses, it is usually appropriate and useful to provide compensation. This may take the form of a small cash payment, a voucher, or a gift. Local customs dictate the type of compensation and the amount.
The advantages are two-fold: (i) response rates are typically higher with compensation, since respondents are being compensated at least partially for their time; (ii) the payment puts the relationship of respondent and investigators on a business footing, and may improve the quality of response.
There is a substantial literature on the greater effectiveness of pre-paying the compensation. Thus, for example, sending a ten dollar bill with a mailed questionnaire will increase the response rate by several percentage points more than sending the ten dollars once the questionnaire is returned. In longitudinal surveys conducted by interviewers, an advance letter with payment just prior to recontact has been shown to be beneficial.
